This visually rich presentation will explore the cultural role of Amish quiltmaking, one of the best-known manifestations of this conservative Anabaptist religious group. Historian Janneken Smucker will share how Amish quiltmaking reveals aspects of Amish women’s relationship to the wider non-Amish world, distinct design preferences within local communities, the ways family members passed down quilts and quilt patterns across generations, and the impact of individual taste and creativity within a faith group emphasizing humility and conformity. Janneken’s knowledge of the Amish and their quilts stems from her cultural upbringing learning to quilt from her own Mennonite grandmother as well as her research for Amish Quilts: Crafting an American Icon (Johns Hopkins, 2013) and Pattern and Paradox: The Quilts of Amish Women (Smithsonian American Art Museum in association with Giles, 2024).
CART (Real-Time Captioning) will be provided for all lectures in the Lecture Hall.
